It has long been known that many of the great masters had teams of assistants who helped create the masterpieces we enjoy to this day. The assistants often had specialties...some might paint clouds, others rocks, etc.
Leonardo Da Vinci was no exception.
His painting, "Virgin of the Rocks" has long been thought to have been painted with a team of assistants. Recently the painting was cleaned and it is now believed that the master painted this one all by himself.
So if a team helped paint a masterpiece...does that make it any less masterful? If the "painter" is more or less a director does that make him any less a maestro? Is the ensemble method of art only valid in music and theater or large scale projects such as Christo's that would be physically impossible for a single person to accomplish?
These are interesting questions for artists and art lovers to ponder.
An artist is the visionary and the driving force to have the vision brought into reality.
Does that mean that perhaps the artist does not need to personally have any skill with brush, chisel or other tool?
After all, there are many artisans who have technical skills but lack the creative vision to bring something unique to life.
Perhaps the artist does have the skills necessary (as of course Da Vinci did) but lacks the time to breath life into all the visions that exist in his mind's eye. Thus using a team to bring the pieces forth benefits all...the artist, the team and the world.
I'd love to hear thoughts from other artists and art lovers on this...for example, if you bought an oil painting by a particular artist and learned that he or she didn't actually do all the painting on the canvas, would that matter to you? Would it have less value monetarily or spiritually for you?
If you'd to read more about the cleaning of the Da Vinci that insp, click here.
Showing posts with label art collecting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art collecting. Show all posts
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
New Zealand Gallery Annual Sale
If you happen to be in New Zealand this month, be sure to stop by the Birdwoods Gallery in Hawkes Bay. They are having their annual sale so it is a great opportunity to buy some art to go with fine wine from the region.
Birdwoods has a nice collection of Shona ston
e sculpture along with metal pieces. In November 2009, Louise and Bruce converted an additional paddock into a 
beautiful sculpture walk with extensive olive tree plantings. Visitors follow a meandering mown path to view a further display of stone sculptures, as well as the life size metal giraffes and crocodiles. Sizes and prices range to fit every budget and suitcase (or shipping container.)Birdwoods also has a Sweet Shop to tempt you as you stroll the garden...so literally they have something for every taste!
Birdwoods Gallery, Sculpture |
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
2010 Colorado Governor's Invitational Art Show Going On Now
The 2010 Colorado Governor's Invitational Art Show and Sale is now happening at the Loveland Museum.
This is an excellent opportunity to see some of the best paintings and sculptures from our talented Colorado artists.
This show started 32 years ago, moving to the Loveland Museum in 1990. These days, more than 4,000 people from across the country attend the show. (Don't fear...that's not all at once!)
The show's director is Judy Archibald and she says, "This show is one of the most prestigious exhibits of original art in the entire western United States." Her goal in selecting the pieces was to show talent and a variety of media.
The show opened last Saturday. 58 Colorado artists are featured with a maximum of 4 pieces in the show. The artists are professionals, from all across Colorado.
Beyond being an excellent show, the exhibit is a fundraiser for the Loveland Rotary and Thompson Valley Rotary with proceeds going to scholarships for art students in Loveland and Berthoud, Colorado, and helping local organizations including Habitat fro Humanity and House of Neighborly Service.
The local Rotary clubs provide the volunteers who are present at the show every day to answer question.
This is a great show to attend if you are an art student looking to learn and gather inspiration. As an artist, it is also a great show to see what your contemporaries are doing and maybe learn and be inspired, too! And, if you are an art collector, this is an opportunity for you to expand your Colorado art collection and help a lot of deserving people and organizations in the process!
The Loveland Museum is located at 503 N. Lincoln Ave, Loveland, Colorado.
The show is free and runs through Sunday, May 30.
For more information call 970-962-2410 or visit www.governorsartshow.org
This is an excellent opportunity to see some of the best paintings and sculptures from our talented Colorado artists.
This show started 32 years ago, moving to the Loveland Museum in 1990. These days, more than 4,000 people from across the country attend the show. (Don't fear...that's not all at once!)
The show's director is Judy Archibald and she says, "This show is one of the most prestigious exhibits of original art in the entire western United States." Her goal in selecting the pieces was to show talent and a variety of media.
The show opened last Saturday. 58 Colorado artists are featured with a maximum of 4 pieces in the show. The artists are professionals, from all across Colorado.
Beyond being an excellent show, the exhibit is a fundraiser for the Loveland Rotary and Thompson Valley Rotary with proceeds going to scholarships for art students in Loveland and Berthoud, Colorado, and helping local organizations including Habitat fro Humanity and House of Neighborly Service.
The local Rotary clubs provide the volunteers who are present at the show every day to answer question.
This is a great show to attend if you are an art student looking to learn and gather inspiration. As an artist, it is also a great show to see what your contemporaries are doing and maybe learn and be inspired, too! And, if you are an art collector, this is an opportunity for you to expand your Colorado art collection and help a lot of deserving people and organizations in the process!
The Loveland Museum is located at 503 N. Lincoln Ave, Loveland, Colorado.
The show is free and runs through Sunday, May 30.
For more information call 970-962-2410 or visit www.governorsartshow.org
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Investing in Indian Art: Motivations to Invest in Art
I found this to be an interesting article about art as an investment, particularly in light of the recent record-breaking auction prices! Art as an investment is back...not that it really ever went away, but sales until very recently had been a bit less than to be hoped for.
Investing in Indian Art: Motivations to Invest in Art
One of the biggest points about investing in art is that you must do for reasons other than hoping to score 1.4 million dollars later from a piece you bought for 1400 hundred. Art is so subjective and the art world has been known to be fickle. Be sure when you buy art you get educated, but also be sure that you love what you buy. Hopefully you will have your art on your walls or in the halls for many, many years to come. Purchasing art that brings you pleasure is the only way to have an assured dividend from this investment!
Investing in Indian Art: Motivations to Invest in Art
One of the biggest points about investing in art is that you must do for reasons other than hoping to score 1.4 million dollars later from a piece you bought for 1400 hundred. Art is so subjective and the art world has been known to be fickle. Be sure when you buy art you get educated, but also be sure that you love what you buy. Hopefully you will have your art on your walls or in the halls for many, many years to come. Purchasing art that brings you pleasure is the only way to have an assured dividend from this investment!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Stone Sculpture Connects Zimbabwe, Colorado and New Zealand
Here in Loveland we have our wonderful Chapungu Sculpture Park which features stone sculptures from Zimbabwe. The setting is beautiful with water and views of the Rocky Mountains.
Well, I just got an update from a wonderful gallery in New Zealand which also promotes the wonderful Shona sculptures and has a sculpture garden as well, the Birdwoods Gallery
Whether you are in beautiful Colorado or New Zealand, you can see and collect fabulous works of art from Zimbabwe, and join the many collectors of these Shona masterpieces.
Well, I just got an update from a wonderful gallery in New Zealand which also promotes the wonderful Shona sculptures and has a sculpture garden as well, the Birdwoods Gallery
Whether you are in beautiful Colorado or New Zealand, you can see and collect fabulous works of art from Zimbabwe, and join the many collectors of these Shona masterpieces.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Raw Stones and Sculptures on Sale
Chapungu Warehouse & Gallery is having a Thank You Promotion
You can get 50% off all craft items, catalogs & books AND RAW STONE from Zimbabwe!
This is a great deal if you are a stone sculptor...I know I'll be heading over there to pick some stone up!
Also you can get 40% off all other sculptures...and if you want to commission a piece you can get 20% off that! This is a great opportunity for you to start or add to your art collection! They represent some of the very best sculptors in Zimbabwe and have pieces in all range of sizes and prices.
If you've never been, this is a fantastic opportunity to meet some fantastic people and see some gorgeous sculpture from Zimbabwe. (If you've already been there, then you know what I'm talking about!)
Address: 1052 N. Boise Ave, Unit B (it is a BIG warehouse, in the back), Loveland, CO
Tel: 970-461-8020
Check out their website: www.ChapunguSculpturePark.com
And if you want to email them: rgatchap@aol.com
And if you enjoy what you see there, be sure to check out the Chapungu Sculpture Park, located at I-25 and Hwy 34 in Loveland. Only 1 hour north of Denver...well worth the drive...the best collection of Sculpture from Zimbabwe in North America!
You can get 50% off all craft items, catalogs & books AND RAW STONE from Zimbabwe!
This is a great deal if you are a stone sculptor...I know I'll be heading over there to pick some stone up!
Also you can get 40% off all other sculptures...and if you want to commission a piece you can get 20% off that! This is a great opportunity for you to start or add to your art collection! They represent some of the very best sculptors in Zimbabwe and have pieces in all range of sizes and prices.
If you've never been, this is a fantastic opportunity to meet some fantastic people and see some gorgeous sculpture from Zimbabwe. (If you've already been there, then you know what I'm talking about!)
Address: 1052 N. Boise Ave, Unit B (it is a BIG warehouse, in the back), Loveland, CO
Tel: 970-461-8020
Check out their website: www.ChapunguSculpturePark.com
And if you want to email them: rgatchap@aol.com
And if you enjoy what you see there, be sure to check out the Chapungu Sculpture Park, located at I-25 and Hwy 34 in Loveland. Only 1 hour north of Denver...well worth the drive...the best collection of Sculpture from Zimbabwe in North America!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Art: More or Less
How do you gauge success at an art show? Is it more attendance? More participating artists? More pieces sold? More dollars in sales?
I was at two big sculpture shows this weekend. In my non-scientific observation I would say there were fewer artists participating and fewer patrons.
However I did see significant numbers of items being wrapped and carried out.
In today's paper there was a preliminary statement that said they believed more pieces sold this year than in years' past. More pieces, but the average price per piece was less. So a bigger number of pieces but less total dollar revenue.
This might be ideal for the show's organizers, but what about for everyone else?
I think this can be viewed as good news...more people got to appreciate and purchase more pieces from more artists. More pieces were shipped. The wealth was spread around.
In the past, many artists thought they had to go bigger and bigger in order to get the big sale. This year, those that did the best had smaller pieces that were affordable by more buyers.
Perhaps the successful artist was "reading" the market and bringing smaller works. Or perhaps he or she was just doing what felt right. Or perhaps it was different artists who sold.
You can decide that your work is best represented large...and know that you will have fewer sales but each will be a bigger dollar amount (and I know of several very large pieces that sold)...or you can decide that your work is best represented smaller...or perhaps you have a combination of both.
I believe that art is something that comes from our hearts and souls and speaks to the heart and soul of the buyer. Rather than changing your vision, think about how you can make your work be accessible to the buyer...maybe you have a smaller version available or maybe you can offer a payment plan for larger pieces.
The big lesson here is that you can sell art in any market. You have to believe that it is possible.
I was at two big sculpture shows this weekend. In my non-scientific observation I would say there were fewer artists participating and fewer patrons.
However I did see significant numbers of items being wrapped and carried out.
In today's paper there was a preliminary statement that said they believed more pieces sold this year than in years' past. More pieces, but the average price per piece was less. So a bigger number of pieces but less total dollar revenue.
This might be ideal for the show's organizers, but what about for everyone else?
I think this can be viewed as good news...more people got to appreciate and purchase more pieces from more artists. More pieces were shipped. The wealth was spread around.
In the past, many artists thought they had to go bigger and bigger in order to get the big sale. This year, those that did the best had smaller pieces that were affordable by more buyers.
Perhaps the successful artist was "reading" the market and bringing smaller works. Or perhaps he or she was just doing what felt right. Or perhaps it was different artists who sold.
You can decide that your work is best represented large...and know that you will have fewer sales but each will be a bigger dollar amount (and I know of several very large pieces that sold)...or you can decide that your work is best represented smaller...or perhaps you have a combination of both.
I believe that art is something that comes from our hearts and souls and speaks to the heart and soul of the buyer. Rather than changing your vision, think about how you can make your work be accessible to the buyer...maybe you have a smaller version available or maybe you can offer a payment plan for larger pieces.
The big lesson here is that you can sell art in any market. You have to believe that it is possible.
Friday, August 7, 2009
Sculpture Invitational Starts Today
In a few hours I will be surrounded by sculpture--my version of mini Heaven.
Several hundred sculptors will be exhibiting. Styles range from very traditional, realistic works to contemporary/modern, with every stop along the way!
There is something that everyone will love. Pieces come large and small, in all subject matters--horses (there are a lot of horses), wildlife, people, whimsy, abstracts.
And the price tags vary, too. You can find some real art deals at the show...whether you are in the market for a piece for your home or office...this is a fantastic place to acquire a sculpture.
Even if you aren't in a position to buy, this is a wonderful opportunity to see a lot of variety and to learn more about art.
One of the best things about the sculpture show is the availability of the artists! They are all there, so you can meet the sculptor who created the piece you fell in love with and ask all sorts of questions. This is an opportunity that you just don't have when you buy through a gallery.
Most artists enjoy talking about their work and love to have people ask questions. So ask away...whether you are a novice or avid collector this is your opportunity to get inside the artist's head for a little while.
Today the Sculpture Invitational is open from 10-3. Admission (today) is $3. Both the Sculpture Invitational and Sculpture in the Park shows are open Saturday 9am-6pm and Sunday 9:30-4:30. Admission on Sat & Sun is $5 per show.
Several hundred sculptors will be exhibiting. Styles range from very traditional, realistic works to contemporary/modern, with every stop along the way!
There is something that everyone will love. Pieces come large and small, in all subject matters--horses (there are a lot of horses), wildlife, people, whimsy, abstracts.
And the price tags vary, too. You can find some real art deals at the show...whether you are in the market for a piece for your home or office...this is a fantastic place to acquire a sculpture.
Even if you aren't in a position to buy, this is a wonderful opportunity to see a lot of variety and to learn more about art.
One of the best things about the sculpture show is the availability of the artists! They are all there, so you can meet the sculptor who created the piece you fell in love with and ask all sorts of questions. This is an opportunity that you just don't have when you buy through a gallery.
Most artists enjoy talking about their work and love to have people ask questions. So ask away...whether you are a novice or avid collector this is your opportunity to get inside the artist's head for a little while.
Today the Sculpture Invitational is open from 10-3. Admission (today) is $3. Both the Sculpture Invitational and Sculpture in the Park shows are open Saturday 9am-6pm and Sunday 9:30-4:30. Admission on Sat & Sun is $5 per show.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
"African Bazaar" , Sculptures and Stone Available
I heard from my friends at the Chapungu Gallery today...for all the stonecarvers out there, they have Springstone available in sizes up to 200 lbs.
For the first time in over two years, most of the Warehouse Gallery sculpture and all African Bazaar items are marked down by 25%.
This includes some beautiful work by Dominic Benhura, Amos Supuni, Arthur Fata, Royal Katiyo, Bernard Matemera and many other world famous artists.
Other items include batik products, beaded wire baskets, beaded Ndebele dolls, semi-precious stone eggs and paperweights as well as smaller stone sculptures in all of the beautiful stones of Zimbabwe starting at $5!
Other items include batik products, beaded wire baskets, beaded Ndebele dolls, semi-precious stone eggs and paperweights as well as smaller stone sculptures in all of the beautiful stones of Zimbabwe starting at $5!
This offer is valid until December 19th for Warehouse Gallery items only.
Visit the warehouse location which houses the largest collection of Zimbabwean stone sculpture in North America. (1052 N. Boise Ave., Unit B, Loveland, CO.)
Visit the warehouse location which houses the largest collection of Zimbabwean stone sculpture in North America. (1052 N. Boise Ave., Unit B, Loveland, CO.)
They are open 9-1pm M-Friday or by special appointment times, call 970-461-8020 to make appointments.
If you don't live in the Loveland area, they will send you images of these one of a kind sculptures to assist in your purchase.
If you don't live in the Loveland area, they will send you images of these one of a kind sculptures to assist in your purchase.
For additional shopping, visit their online Gallery at www.chapungusculpturepark.com
Photo courtesy of Chapungu Warehouse Gallery
Friday, September 5, 2008
Art in Your Community
Check to see what is happening in your community in the world of art. Most cities have a museum, or gallery or two. Take some time and see what they have to offer. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Several of our neighboring towns have events called "Studio Tours" where you can actually see artists working in their studios. It is a great opportunity to meet the artist and see where/how they work.
If there is no museum or gallery where you live, see what is nearby. You probably don't have to go to the "big city" to find art. Talk to your neighbors, shopkeepers, people in your government or Chamber of Commerce. They may know of someone in the area who makes fantastic quilts or sculptures.
Keep your eyes open for what is happening locally and you might just find a great piece for your collection!
Several of our neighboring towns have events called "Studio Tours" where you can actually see artists working in their studios. It is a great opportunity to meet the artist and see where/how they work.
If there is no museum or gallery where you live, see what is nearby. You probably don't have to go to the "big city" to find art. Talk to your neighbors, shopkeepers, people in your government or Chamber of Commerce. They may know of someone in the area who makes fantastic quilts or sculptures.
Keep your eyes open for what is happening locally and you might just find a great piece for your collection!
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